Our take on the good and bad news of the past week

ORCHIDS to Scott Walker and Mary Burke for both being cool to the idea of raising state sales taxes on certain goods and services, such as health club memberships, groceries and trips to the hair salon. Selective taxing is not a prudent way to proceed to solve the state's tax burden problems, and the candidates should be seeking ways to reduce the overall tax burden, not shift it to other avenues.

ONIONS to the U.S. Secret Service, which allowed a White House intruder to get well past what would be considered acceptable security in a recent incident. Omar J. Gonzalez ran past a guard at the front door and into the East Room, about halfway across the first floor of the building. The suspect was carrying a knife, even though the Secret Service initially said he was unarmed. The agency said, in typical cavalier fashion, that it would "review" the incident and make changes as needed. It is obvious something needs changing if intruders get such easy access to the White House.

ORCHIDS to businesses that offer incentives to their employees to remain healthy, or to do positive things in their communities. The example of Americollect's Manitowoc office, which reached a goal of achieving 50 random acts of kindness in conjunction with its 50th anniversary, stands out as a shining example. We know a number of other companies do special things as an incentive to their workers, and we should be proud of all of them.

ONIONS to those who continue to deal in heroin. Two men were sentenced this week in cases involving the insidious drug. In one, a 21-year-old Manitowoc man was placed on probation for three years and jailed 10 months for selling heroin in the vicinity of a Manitowoc school. In another case, a 29-year-old was sentenced to three years in prison for delivering the drug in the local area, after obtaining heroin in trips to Racine. We hope law enforcement authorities continue to be vigilant in their efforts to eradicate this drug menace from our streets.

ORCHIDS to Milwaukee Brewers catcher Jonathan Lucroy, who set a record for the most doubles in a season by a catcher with 53 two-baggers. He also finished the season hitting over .300. Lucroy was one of the bright spots in an otherwise disappointing season that saw the Brewers collapse in the final month and miss the playoffs. The team will not need to reassess its players — and management — as it prepares for 2015.

ONIONS to the five juveniles allegedly involved in setting fire at a rail yard in Manitowoc that resulted in an estimated $100,000 in damages. The boys also were allegedly involved in damaging five vehicles and a motor home during their spree on Sept. 27. We hope the legal system will impress upon them that this goes far beyond "boys will be boys," and that there are serious consequences for this kind of behavior.

ORCHIDS to the Manitowoc Public School District for providing ample opportunity for district residents to learn about its Nov. 4 ballot referendums seeking to exceed state-imposed spending limits. Informational meetings are scheduled from 6 to 7 p.m. Oct. 6 at Wilson Junior High School; Oct. 15 at Washington Junior High School and Oct. 22 at Wilson Junior High. We hope people take the opportunity to learn more about this important initiative to cast an informed ballot.

ONIONS to the Government Accountability Board for its funding distribution proposed to educate people about the new voter ID requirements. The GAB would spend $468,000 on TV, radio and online educational ads about voter ID, leading up to the Nov. 4 election. Call us bias, but where is the money for the best format for such education — newspapers. There's still time for the GAB, which votes this week on the funding plan.

ORCHIDS to the Manitowoc Public Utilities, which is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year. The MPU has provided generations of Manitowoc residents with reliable electricity and water, and we hope the utility continues to do so for many years to come.